Product Review: Trader Joe's Gluten-Free Brownie Mix

I don't use baking mixes very often, but I make an exception for gluten-free treats. If you don't bake gluten-free on a regular basis, but want to make a GF treat for a friend, it's hard to justify picking up a lot of specialty ingredients. So mixes like these brownies from Trader Joe's are really helpful in these cases. I gave these brownies a try, curious to see if they could become my go-to gluten-free dessert. Well, that's probably not going to happen, sad to say.

I'll tell you straight: I was not a fan.

There isn't a lot to say about these brownies. I had high hopes for them, though. Their ingredient list was shockingly short (just seven ingredients!), for a processed mix product, which was encouraging. They didn't have any dairy, soy, or tree nuts. (Amazingly versatile, right?)

They bake up in a snap, since like most mixes they just need a few ingredients stirred in quickly. They baked up nice and dark, and they looked pleasantly fudgy.

The only problem? They really did not taste good. I found them chalky and greasy, without a very nice mouth feel. I've eaten plenty of gluten-free baked goods, and I know that I can do better than this!

As you can see from the photo above, they also barely held together; they had to be refrigerated before cutting.

What do you think of these brownies? Have you ever tried this mix? What did you think? And if you have better gluten-free mixes to recommend, please do! It's always nice to have one around for a last-minute gluten-free treat.